In front of family, friends, and former staff, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Commission inducted Mayor Tom Bradley into the Memorial Coliseum Court of Honor. Located within the iconic Peristyle arches, Mayor Bradley’s plaque joins an illustrious cadre of 61 individuals who have had a definite impact upon the history, glory and growth of the Coliseum. Previous inductees include Jesse Owens, John Garland, John F. Kennedy, and others.

Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, who championed this honor noted, “Mayor Bradley’s plaque is right at home in this Court of Honor alongside some of the greatest athletes and individuals who contributed to the success of this historic venue. Los Angeles owes a debt of gratitude to Mayor Bradley for his enduring legacy of not only what he accomplished here, but for the entire City of Los Angeles during his two-decade run as Mayor.”

The Supervisor added, “As (Mayor Bradley) liked to say: ‘Los Angeles is the city of hope and opportunity. I am a living example of that.’ I appreciate his faith, his dedication and his vision. And now, all who enter the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum will also remember and recognize Mayor Bradley for all his stellar achievements.”

Mayor Tom Bradley was elected as the first – and only – black mayor of Los Angeles and served for an unprecedented five terms, from 1973 to 1993. He fought to bring the 1984 Summer Olympic Games to Los Angeles and forged an agreement with the International Olympic Committee. The Los Angeles games were the first privately financed Olympics and turned a huge profit. Debra Duncan, the chair of the LA84 Foundation, an organization formed to manage Southern California’s endowment from the 1984 Olympic Games, noted “[Mayor Bradley] helped ignite a flame that has lasted 30 years later.”

In honor of Mayor Bradley’s legacy as a tremendous booster of the small business and the Angeleno entrepreneurial spirit, Pink’s Hot Dogs, the famed Los Angeles hot dog stand, were served to attendees of the induction into the Court of Honor.